Marlborough wine region
| Wine region | |
Wairau Valley vineyards in Marlborough, New Zealand | |
| Type | Geographical Indication |
|---|---|
| Year established | 2018 |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Sub-regions |
|
| Size of planted vineyards | 27,808 hectares (68,720 acres) |
| Grapes produced | 343,036 tonnes |
| Varietals produced | |
| No. of wineries | 158 |
| Comments | GI established 2018, commercial vineyards first established in 1973; data from 2020 |
New Zealand vineyard area by region, 2020. Marlborough accounts for about two thirds of the total vineyard area in New Zealand.
- Marlborough (69.6%)
- Hawke's Bay (12.6%)
- Central Otago (4.8%)
- North Canterbury (3.4%)
- Gisborne (3%)
- Nelson (2.8%)
- Wairarapa (2.6%)
- Other (1.1%)
The Marlborough wine region is by far New Zealand's largest, accounting in 2020 for three quarters of the country's wine production, 70% of its vineyard area and 85% of its wine exports. A Geographical Indication in the north-east of the South Island, it covers the entire Marlborough District and the Kaikōura District of the Canterbury Region, but in practice the vineyards are concentrated around the Blenheim and Seddon townships. Internationally, Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is recognised as world class; wine writers such as Oz Clarke and George Taber have described it as the best in the world.